At Your Service (BWWM)

Chapter 33.5 (Dyan)

I decided to switch this chapter and let it happen after the big revelation. I think it would hit more this way. Additionally, those who read this first still had that surprise right?

....or had you figured this all along? Let me know!

Earlier...

I sat in my room, dried tears streaming down my cheeks.

The room felt like it was caving in on me, or was that just my life?

The thick curtain kept the light out of the room, darkness surrounding me. The vents pushed cold air into the space, the microclimate freezing yet I welcomed the chill.

I was to marry in the next few hours to a man I despised... A man that wanted me only for my body, for what I could offer him...for riches.

I ran a hand down my face, my chest heaving as I sobbed. I had no choice, no will... I was always an object to them, something to own... something that could never stand on its own.

If I tried to defy them, my life as I knew it would cease...If this could even be considered a life. I had no freedom, no real life...

Knock, knock...

I looked at the door but didn't voice a reply to the calls Thelma issued. She would come in either way; they had gotten used to my withdrawal.

The door opened, light filtering into the room and my stomach growled as the scent of eggs and bacon fill the space. Thelma walked in, shivering at the temperature but never commented on it.

She was in a blue square neck dress with sleeves and had a white apron. Her hair in a tight bun and a shiny tray in her hands.

"Good morning, Miss Ryder," she said before placing the tray on my nightstand.

She didn't wait on a respond as she wasn't getting one. Thelma opened the curtains and I closed my eyes at the brightness.

"Your dress has been delivered and Mr. Alberstein has employed a few persons to do your makeup and they will be here in half an hour. The wedding is in three hours so we have time to make you look presentable..."

I drowned out her next words, my mind wallowing in the misery I live.

Nicalus. At first, I thought of him as my saviour and my young, foolish heart wished that maybe he would be the one to care and love me. I was wrong. He was as conniving as my foster parents...

For years, I had been living in a cage, restricted and alone. The only love I knew was my mother, her memory and a few trinkets were all I had... She cherished me, accepted me as I was. No one has ever done that...not until him...

Jovaughn.

Those evergreen eyes, his dark locks, angular face, luscious lips, his humour, his assertiveness, his gentleness, his versatile personality...everything about him... I missed him.

He always made me smile and laugh, being around him was like a breath of fresh air. I enjoyed every moment with him whether we were just talking or doing more...

His touches always caused my heart to flutter, his kisses always made my head lighten, and my toes curl. Jovaughn wasn't perfect and neither was I but I adored him... so much...

I never wanted to get him into trouble... I tried so hard to stay away but he was so tempting. He was wild, beautiful, charismatic, and free. His mischievousness pulled me in and then, I was a goner...

"I will return shortly to administer your medication," Thelma stated before looking towards me with a faint smile before leaving.

Word had spread throughout the mansion about my affair with Jovaughn and Thelma had been one of the few to reach out to me about it. She had it in her mind that Troy seduced me and used me as he had many of the other women here.